Allegiant Air just announced that it will be offering $44 dollar one way flights from Denver to Montrose- this should be a great addition to the air service to and from Telluride. Get on board!

Plan to ski Telluride? Allegiant Air says it will have flights from DIA to Montrose for $44

Flights to airport nearest swank Telluride start at $44 one way

Ultra-low-cost carrier Allegiant Air will begin service from Denver International Airport in December, offering twice weekly nonstop flights to Montrose Regional Airport during the ski season.

The flights are mostly scheduled for Wednesdays and Saturdays from Dec. 17 through March 25, though there are occasional Sunday flights during high season. Allegiant will use an Airbus A319 that seats 156 passengers. Flight are priced as low as $44 one way, but there are additional fees for checking skis, snowboards and luggage.

DIA chief Kim Day called the addition of Allegiant to the menu of regional flight options a critical link for Western Slope communities.

Montrose, the airport closest to Telluride with commercial service, is served by United Airlines and American Airlines subsidiary Envoy during the offseason. Service expands in winter to include Delta Air Lines, and now Allegiant.

“We’re very excited to bring Allegiant service to the Denver area,” Allegiant chief operating officer Jude Bricker said in a news release. “We’re sure that travelers will enjoy the new low-cost option to enjoy one of Colorado’s most popular ski destinations.”

The new Allegiant flights will serve both tourists and locals, offering discounted flights to Denver for the Montrose region. For several years, the Allegiant flights between Los Angeles, Las Vegas and Montrose have been “very much local-use flights,” said Matt Skinner, the chief operating officer of the Telluride-based Colorado Flights Alliance, that works to keep steady airline traffic into the region.

The low-cost Allegiant Montrose flights — a stop between Los Angeles and Denver — are several hundred dollars cheaper than regular flights on United.

Historically, Colorado Flights’ work has been all about luring tourists from Chicago, New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Phoenix, Dallas and Houston. Telluride saw another record winter in 2015-16 and with increased flights this summer, the bustling box canyon’s festival-heavy warm weather season is pacing toward yet another record.

The Allegiant flight marks a more regional approach by Colorado Flights that could help grow Telluride’s ability to draw Front Range residents. They already flock in the summer. But in winter, well, as Skinner said, “there are a lot of ski areas between Telluride and Denver.”

But with tickets as low as $44, “we should be able to draw a broad variety of skiers from Denver,” Skinner said.

This summer schedule into Montrose, which includes daily flights from Dallas, “is the most robust its ever been,” Jensen said. And summer flights that typically end in August are stretching into October, while winter flights are beginning earlier, flying into Montrose a week before Thanksgiving instead of later in December.

Jensen credits Skinner and his Colorado Flights team for expanding the region’s airline program and hopes the Allegiant flights grow his resort’s popularity among Front Range skiers. With some of the best steep skiing in Colorado, it won’t take long for a metro-Denver based skier to develop an affinity for Telluride, Jensen said.

“I think that passionate skier segment, both for Telluride Ski & Golf and for the whole community, is a segment that is important to us and I think is representative of a future customer that could make Telluride their ski resort on a longer term basis,” Jensen said.

To kick off the new Western Slope service, Allegiant has launched a “Christmas in July” sweepstakes at Facebook.com/Allegiant to give away 12 seats on the inaugural flight.

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